Nearly 300 journalists urge release of abducted Afghan colleague

April 2, 2007 12:00 PM ET

New York, April 5, 2007—Nearly 300 journalists have signed an open letter urging the release of abducted Afghan journalist Ajmal Nakshbandi, who has been held captive by the Taliban since March 4. Those signing the letter represent an array of local and international news organizations, including CNN, The Associated Press, Reuters, Time, The New York Times, NBC, ABC, and Al-Jazeera.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, which organized the campaign, first issued the letter on Monday. Additional signatures were submitted this week. Here is the text of the letter followed by all of the signatories:

We are writing to call attention to the case of Ajmal Nakshbandi, an Afghan freelance journalist who was abducted in Helmand province with La Repubblica reporter Daniele Mastrogiacomo and driver Sayed Agha on March 4. Nakshbandi, a reporter in his own right, was serving as Mastrogiacomo’s translator. Agha was beheaded a few days after the three men were seized, and Mastrogiacomo was released on March 19, apparently in exchange for five senior Taliban leaders.

Only Nakshbandi remains captive, apparently held by the Taliban. His case has all but disappeared from Western media even as it draws extensive coverage in the Afghan press. As journalists who have worked closely with local reporters while covering war and conflict in many parts of the world, we are greatly concerned about Nakshbandi’s fate. He is admired as a first-rate reporter and knowledgeable colleague; his deep understanding of Afghanistan’s complexities earned him a reputation for even-handedness.

We join our Afghan colleagues in urging Nakshbandi’s captors to release him immediately.

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